Amphiphilic water soluble cationic ring opening metathesis copolymer as an antibacterial agent

Antimicrobial Polymer via ROMP of a Bioderived Tricyclic Oxanorbornene Lactam Derivative

The rapid emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria represents a critical global health threat, underscoring the urgent need for alternative antimicrobial strategies beyond conventional antibiotics. In this study, we report the synthesis of novel biobased antimicrobial polymers bearing quaternary ammonium salts, derived from sustainable feedstocks, maleic anhydride, dimethylaminobenzaldehyde, and furfurylamine. The functional tricyclic oxanorbornene lactam monomer is polymerized via ring opening metathesis polymerization, yielding well-defined polymers with controlled molar masses and low dispersity. Structural characterization is performed using 1D and 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, and the polymerization kinetics is monitored by online 1H NMR spectroscopy. The quaternized biobased polymers demonstrate potent broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against three clinically isolated MDR bacterial strains. They exhibit minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) that are significantly lower than those of several conventional antibiotics while also showing low hemolytic activity toward mammalian cells. This study highlights the potential of bioderived ROMP polymers as promising, sustainable antimicrobial polymers for combating the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance.

Biodegradable Carbon Dioxide-Derived Non-Viral Gene Vectors for Osteosarcoma Gene Therapy

Osteosarcoma often occurs in children and adolescents with high invasiveness and high mortality. Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) overexpressed in most tumors promotes cancer cell proliferation and transformation. PLK1 is considered as a therapeutic target for osteosarcoma. RNA interference-based therapies are employed to combat osteosarcoma through silencing PLK1 gene expression. However, the treatment results remain unsatisfactory due to the lack of a safe and efficient nonviral gene vector. To tackle this hurdle, biodegradable and CO₂ -derivative cationic poly(vinylcyclohexene carbonates) (CPCHCs) are used as gene vectors to perform a siPLK1 therapeutic strategy for osteosarcoma treatment. Of those CPCHCs, CPCHC60 demonstrates the most excellent performance in gene transfection efficiency, endo-lysosome escaping, biodegradability, and biosafety. With the treatment of CPCHCs/siRNA nanoparticles, the expression level of PLK1 gene in osteosarcoma cells is significantly down-regulated. Subsequently, cells are arrested in the G₂ /M phase and subsequently dead in the form of apoptosis, resulting in significant tumor regression both in vitro and in vivo. This study brings a new insight into the development of superior nonviral gene vectors for practical cancer treatment. Based on the results, the resulting nanoparticle-based gene drug formation is considered to have a highly successful chance in further translational nanomedicine applications.